In the last week, a number of people have written to me concerned about proposals to have the HSE take over the current functions of the ambulance service which are provided in Dublin by Dublin Fire Brigade.

As we know internationally there are a great many cities where fire brigades provide paramedic service, and provide them well. Dublin is one such city, and I am proud of that.

I believe there are a number of benefits to keeping this service in the hands of DFB, not least the institutional knowledge that they have built up from providing this service for over 100 years. If elected to Dublin City Council, I will personally oppose any attempt to allow the HSE to subsume this service, and will urge others to do likewise.